NEW TROLLS [AKA: LA BARCHETTA]

In 1978, with their previous album "Aldebaran", New Trolls gave up almost completely progressive rock turning to a more commercial kind of music. The album released in 1979, bearing the same name of the band, is another good pop work in the same mood of "Aldebaran" and here you can find only two interesting songs with clear hints of progressive.

The opener "Fuoco" features a good guitar work but it is definitively more close to Earth Wind & Fire style than to prog rock. The following "Che idea" (chosen as single) reminds me more than vaguely of Bee Gees' "Too Much Heaven". "Immaginare", "In paradiso" and "Volo" are other disco pop tracks in Bee Gees style featuring pleasant harmony vocals and weak lyrics. "Accendi la tua luce" features harmonica, piano and gospel harmony vocals but it is not convincing at all.

The only two remarkable tracks are "Domenica di Napoli" and "OK (fiamme sul pacifico)". The first one was co-written in collaboration with the singer-songwriter Lucio Dalla, it's introduced by a classical guitar and blends some folkloric elements from Naples with hints of prog and great harmony vocals. "Ok (fiamme sul Pacifico)" is by far my favourite song on this album, it's a kind of parody of the American films about the war in the Southern Pacific Ocean and lyrics are built like an ironic trailer for an imaginary film with John Wayne; Gregory Peck and Montgomery Cliff while the music is complex and almost crazy, well performed, with many changes of rhythm and excellent and varied melodic lines: a little hidden pearl in New Trolls discography!

In the whole this is an album very far from essential in a prog collection, but with some good moments and that could be interesting for fans and collectors.